Making International Police Peacekeeping More Effective for the 21 st Century

Transcription

1 The Right Capacities for New Challenges Making International Police Peacekeeping More Effective for the 21 st Century Report of the High-Level Conference on International Police Peacekeeping in the 21 st Century: The Right Capacities for New Challenges 10/11 October 2012, Berlin, Germany

2 Published: November 2013 Authors: Steffen Eckhard, Philipp Rotmann, (Global Public Policy Institute; Annika Hansen and Zoe Mentel (UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations) Conference Rapporteurs: Emese Böröcz, Sarah Brockmeier and Ginger Schmitz Title and Design: Alexandra Fragstein/fragstein-berlin.de Photos: Ute Grabowsky/photothek.net

3 Table of contents Table of Contents Executive Summary 6 Introduction 9 1. Why International Police Peacekeeping Matters What We ve Learned in the Field: 50+ Years in the Police Peacekeeping Business How to Further Improve Delivery of Police Peacekeeping Services Conclusion: The Right Capacities for New Challenges 23 Annex 1: Concluding Statement 25 Annex 2: Conference Agenda 28 Annex 3: Delegations 31 3

4 List of Abbreviations ASEAN AU DPKO EU FPU INTERPOL MINUSTAH OROLSI PNTL SGBV SGF TCI UN UNAMID UNDP UNMISS UNMIT UNODC WACI Association of Southeast Asian Nations African Union Department of Peacekeeping Operations European Union Formed Police Units International Criminal Police Organization United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti DPKO s Office of the Rule of Law and Security Institutions Policia Nacional de Timor-Leste Sexual and Gender-Based Violence Strategic Guidance Framework Transnational Crime Units United Nations African Union/UN Hybrid operation in Darfur UN Development Programme UN Mission in South Sudan UN Mission in Timor-Leste UN Office on Drugs and Crime West Africa Coast Initiative

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6 The Right Capacities for New Challenges Executive Summary For more than a decade, peace operations have seen a rapid expansion in both the number of police officers deployed and the ambition of mandates to maintain security and contribute to establishing the rule of law with executive powers, to provide operational support to host-state police, and to support the reform and rebuilding of entire police services. To assess the current and future operational, strategic and political demands that arise for the UN Secretariat and member states, the Government of the Federal Republic of Germany and the Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO) convened the High-Level Conference on International Police Peacekeeping in the 21 st Century: The Right Capacities for New Challenges. The conference was held in Berlin on October 2012 and was jointly hosted by the German Federal Foreign Office, the German Ministry of Interior and the UN Police Division within DPKO s Office of the Rule of Law and Security Institutions. The German Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dr. Guido Westerwelle, and the German Minister of the Interior, Dr. Hans- Peter Friedrich, both addressed the 200 participants along with UN Under-Secretary-General for Field Support Ameerah Haq, who headed the UN delegation. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon contributed a video message to the delegates from more than 100 member states, international and regional organizations, academia and training institutions. An effective and legitimate police service is indispensable to provide security, maintain public safety and uphold the rule of law in accordance with human rights and democratic values. The work of police in peace operations is therefore an essential building block of any transition to a more stable and peaceful political order. As the largest and most experienced provider of police peacekeepers, the United Nations leads in delivering international support to the reconstruction of security and ruleof-law institutions after conflict. UN police have important comparative advantages, including the ability to deploy rapidly; longstanding expertise in training and guidance development; the credibility to engage governments politically on sensitive issues; and the legitimacy of their mandate. While demand for international police peacekeeping is likely to remain high, the current economic climate continues to affect the supply of police officers, the regional imbalance of contributions and the provision of police experts. As a result, police peacekeeping faces the dual challenge of becoming more effective with fewer human and financial resources. However, conference participants concluded that the perceived competition between domestic and international demands for qualified police officers reflected a false choice. The lack of effective police coverage anywhere in the world enables transnational organized crime, corruption and terrorism to flourish. Internal and external security are indivisible in today s world, and by improving host state police, peace operations contribute directly to security at home. Indispensable for Preventive Security at Home and Abroad Speakers at the conference argued that police peacekeeping receives too few trained and qualified officers, including those with specialist skills, to fulfil core police roles and to advise and mentor local counterparts extremely demanding roles that have little in common with most police officers assignments at home. To succeed, missions need 6

7 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY strategic guidance and institutional support, as well as predictable funding and effective partnerships with regional security organizations and development agencies. Practical Improvements in Capacities, Capabilities and Collaboration The participants discussed possible improvements, several of which are already underway. First, the UN s initiative to develop a strategic guidance framework will create a common platform for police officers serving in UN peace operations and bridge the gap between various national approaches. Second, the UN and its member states together must address significant capacity gaps in terms of skills and diversity. The UN s Global Effort to increase the share of women police peacekeepers to 20 per cent by 2014 remains crucial to achieving greater operational effectiveness. Francophone officers are in high demand, as are specialists in police planning and management, information analysis and criminal intelligence, integrated border management, public order management, professional standards, anti-corruption and police command. Specialized capabilities can also be successfully deployed as specialist teams from a single country a model that Norway recently applied in Haiti. Third, senior officials in police peacekeeping need to be better prepared for the challenge of effective, strategic leadership in operations in uncertain and complex environments, which call for an appreciation of local political contexts and genuine domestic ownership; extensive communication with all stakeholders; the ability to manage the unique skillsets of UN police officers; and the creativity and pragmatism to make do with insufficient resources. More emphasis should be placed on professional staff development with a view to career paths that include international policing. Fourth, participants considered better ways of leveraging institutional partnerships to tackle organized crime as a peace spoiler, and discussed ongoing initiatives such as the West African Coast Initiative and the Pacific Transnational Crime Coordination Centre, the 2009 Action Plan for International Police Peacekeeping (by member states, UN DPKO and INTERPOL), and the contribution of bilateral police assistance. Needed: A New Political Dynamic in Support of Effective Police Peacekeeping The Concluding Statement (attached) outlines how police peacekeeping can become more visible on the political agenda, nationally as well as globally. At the global level, key political steps for member states are to dispatch police advisers to New York and to give greater prominence to police peacekeeping in the work of the UN General Assembly and the UN Security Council. To better connect to national capitals, the establishment of a Group of Friends for the UN Police was discussed as a way to include all stakeholders involved in UN police missions and facilitate the informal exchange of ideas, a way to create a sense of common purpose, and a place to launch concrete initiatives. Since the conference, the Group of Friends has been created; it held its first meeting in New York in May

8 The Right Capacities for New Challenges Dr. Hans-Peter Friedrich, German Minister of Interior 8

9 Introduction Introduction Over the past decade, international police peacekeeping has seen rapid expansion, both in terms of numbers and ambition. Demand for UN police officers has risen even faster than the number of military peacekeepers mandated for peacekeeping operations, despite the fact that other organizations in police peacekeeping have increased their international police deployments as well. The growth in numbers has coincided with a trend towards markedly more complex and ambitious tasks to (1) enforce public order through executive mandates, (2) provide operational support, and (3) support the reform and rebuilding of entire police services. This qualitative change in police peacekeeping mandates entails significant challenges with respect to recruitment, training, doctrine and the management of operations. Police peacekeepers are currently operating in mission areas that range from urban environments to vast desert terrain. Asymmetric threats, sectarian violence, extremist and rebel groups, lack of political will to conduct police reform, transnational organized crime and terrorism these all contribute to an evergrowing list of spoilers to peace and security. Combined with the growing complexity of police peacekeeping tasks and rapidly evolving threats, this reality places new demands on both the United Nations Secretariat and member states. To identify and prioritize UN police needs and goals, the Government of the Federal Republic of Germany and the Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO) convened the High-Level Conference on International Police Peacekeeping in the 21 st German Foreign Minister Dr. Guido Westerwelle Century: The Right Capacities for New Challenges. From October 2012, the UN Police Division, located within DPKO s Office of the Rule of Law and Security Institutions (OROLSI), joined the German Federal Foreign Office and the German Ministry of Interior to host this event in Berlin. Policing is an essential building block of any transition to a more stable political order. This high-level conference brought together representatives with a unique set of expertise in international policing from more than 100 member states. The conference s 200 participants included senior delegates representing foreign ministries, interior ministries, and other law enforcement institutions. Also attending the conference were senior representatives from the Secretariat, UN agencies, funds and programs (such as UNDP and UNODC), peacekeeping operations, regional and partner organizations (including the AU, ASEAN, EU, and INTERPOL), distinguished practitioners and independent experts on police peacekeeping. 1 1 Annex 3 includes a full list of conference participants. 9

10 The Right Capacities for New Challenges UN Under-Secretary-General for Field Support Ameerah Haq, German Foreign Minister Dr. Guido Westerwelle and German Minister of Interior Dr. Hans-Peter Friedrich delivered keynote addresses to the participants, with UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon contributing a welcome message by video. UN Police Adviser Ann-Marie Orler and Commissioner Stefan Feller from the German Ministry of Interior led delegates through a series of presentations and panel discussions that addressed the key political, strategic and operational challenges that international peacekeeping faces in the 21 st century. This report, organized thematically in four sections, provides a summary of points raised in Ameerah Haq, UN Under-Secretary-General for Field Support panel presentations and discussions. Section 1 addresses the role of international police peacekeeping in managing conflict and contributing to sustainable peace and security. Section 2 takes stock of current police peacekeeping practices and reflects on the lessons and institutional developments of the past decade. Section 3 focuses on three particular areas of need: (1) strategic guidance, (2) personnel and (3) leadership and command. This report concludes with a summary of conference findings and recommendations, which are also captured by the Concluding Statement attached to this report as Annex 1. 10

11 Why International Police Peacekeeping Matters 1. Why International Police Peacekeeping Matters Policing in post-conflict environments looks and feels radically different than policing in stable societies. This holds true for both the officer engaged in policing as a profession as well as the citizen receiving (or, more often, not receiving) policing services in the community. United Nations police work in some of the toughest environments in the world. They serve communities, they bring stability, they inspire trust. Ms. Haq, having served as the head of the UN Mission in Timor-Leste (UNMIT) from 2009 to 2012, painted a vivid picture of the state of policing in societies emerging from conflict: Patrolling is minimal or non-existent, and the reassuring image of an officer walking Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon the beat is a rare sight. There is no functioning emergency number to call, no rapid response system in place, no officer or vehicle to arrive on scene when a crime is in progress. More often than not, there are no police stations where citizens can go to report crimes. As crimes go unreported, uninvestigated and unprosecuted, feelings of instability and insecurity grow at both the community and national levels. 11

12 The Right Capacities for New Challenges Twice in recent history, this was the tragic reality in Timor-Leste which illustrates the centrality of policing in restoring public trust not only in law and order, but also in government itself. After its referendum for independence in 1999, a wave of violence destroyed much of Timor-Leste s infrastructure, and tens of thousands of people fled their homes. In 2006, a second major political crisis led to the disintegration of the national police, and UN police officers were redeployed as part of a renewed peacekeeping operation to restore law and order. With the Timorese police fractured and in disarray, UNMIT assumed policing responsibility in the country, with UN police officers patrolling restive neighbourhoods in Baucau, Dili and other towns still experiencing street battles and violence. At the same time, UN police were helping rebuild the Timorese police, from the ground up, so that the Policia Nacional de Timor-Leste (PNTL) could gradually resume full responsibility for policing, district by district. Begun in 2009, this careful handover process culminated on 31 October 2012, when the PNTL was declared Fully Reconstituted, a milestone that allowed for the rapid drawdown of UNMIT staff. Restoring Order and Building Trust Mr. Jordan Ryan, Director of the Bureau for Crisis Prevention and Recovery at the UN Development Programme (UNDP), argued that security and the restoration of peaceful, everyday lives are among the most basic concerns for citizens in post-conflict countries. Viewed in this light, fighting crime is but one of many functions of the police. Uniformed and highly visible, police officers are the representatives of state authority that the average, law abiding citizen is most likely to encounter in his or her daily routine. Each police interaction presents an opportunity to foster or harm the relationship between a state and its citizens. UN policing aims to improve the quality of this relationship. Policing that respects fundamental human rights while contributing to human security is one of the prerequisites for a functioning democracy. With a functioning security and justice system, the chances for long-term stability grow, along with the prospects for development and economic growth. Supporting Host-States Over the Long Haul International police peacekeeping can support host states through all phases of a UN mission. In the short-term, international police can step in to fill a security vacuum and ensure orderly conduct of domestic policing. Over the life of a mission, the UN police deliver training to the local police, mentor and advise local officers, help draft laws related to policing and improve police organizational structures. Given that conflicts are always complex and often entrenched, the transformation of such conflicts requires UN police engagement in long-term tasks, such as Security Sector Reform. 12

13 Why International Police Peacekeeping Matters Number of police deployed in UN Peace Operations ( ) 15,000 12,000 9,000 6,000 3, The number of police deployed spiked from 1,244 police officers in 1999 to about 12,500 in Several thousand more are serving with regional organizations such as the European Union or the African Union, and all are recruiting from the same pool. Almost 90 countries currently contribute police peacekeepers to UN missions. Addressing Crime that Knows No Boundaries Dr. Friedrich addressed the reluctance of member states to send police officers especially those with specialized skills abroad to peacekeeping operations. Domestically, every officer deployed looks like one less officer on hand to investigate crimes, command units and design crime prevention strategies. Today, this apparent conflict of interest between domestic security and international security is a false choice: external and internal security threats are not so easily separated in a globalized world, as Dr. Friedrich argued. International peacekeeping contributes to security at home Instead, international peacekeeping directly contributes to security at home. Fragile states pro- German Minister of Interior Dr. Hans-Peter Friedrich vide fertile ground for transnational organized crime, corruption and international terrorism. Apart from the devastating effects on the local population, as Mr. Aldo Lale-Demoz, Deputy Executive Director of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) explained, the gains made in organized crime in fragile states are also linked to terrorism and drug trafficking, which threaten the stability of the larger international community. One need only look to the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo to understand how semi-military criminal groups provoke conflict to sustain their illegal activities, which involve exploiting and trafficking minerals, drugs, timber and wildlife. 13

14 The Right Capacities for New Challenges Adding Value to Policing Back Home National borders are not our first but in fact our last line of defense in the globalized world. Global challenges require a globalized response. Assistant Secretary-General Dmitry Titov pointed out that less than five percent of UN police officers currently come from member states of the European Union. Any increase in their contribution would be value added for United Nations peacekeeping; it would also improve security in their own countries. Furthermore, service in UN peacekeeping exposes police officers to the unique professional experience of working with international colleagues and learning about their policing cultures. Upon returning, they can draw on this knowledge in their home countries, where they police increasingly diverse communities. Send us a good officer, and we will return to you a better one. UN Police Adviser Ann-Marie Orler 14

15 What We ve Learned in the Field: 50+ Years in the Police Peacekeeping Business 2. What We ve Learned in the Field: 50+ Years in the Police Peacekeeping Business The days of the four-men-in-a-jeep model of international peacekeeping are clearly gone. The field s rapid expansion and growing complexity have resulted from strategic and planned decision-making on the one hand, and responses to unanticipated demands on the other. The last decade in particular has yielded important lessons for all providers of international police peacekeeping services, including regional organizations like the AU and EU, which entered the business of police peacekeeping more recently. The conceptual and institutional lessons learned from five decades of international policing were discussed at length in Berlin. Understanding the Human and Political Reality of Post-Conflict Policing Understanding the national, regional and local context is central to any peacebuilding process. UN police often work in environments without functioning state structures, professional law enforcement, legal frameworks for policing, basic professional standards and operational equipment. Most Security Council mandates task the UN police with supporting their local partners to build police services, sometimes from scratch. In many conflicts, host-state police officers are socialized into a military context and spend their professional lives as soldiers or rebels. In these types of situations, those who don a police uniform often regard their salary as a reward for previous wartime service rather than remuneration for a new kind of service to society. All of this occurs in a political context in which personnel decisions are deeply entangled with core political questions about access to power, recognition, reward and influence. Building Local Ownership, Both Formally and Informally Any effort to build police capacity and institutions must be country-led and inclusive, both in terms of (a) political commitment of the host state, and (b) confidence and trust of the community. The common denominator across police peacekeeping missions which otherwise vary in scope, size, challenges, etc. is their end goal: to ensure the host-state s ability to provide public safety without international assistance. The UN police must, therefore, plan all activities 15

16 The Right Capacities for New Challenges with an eye towards sustainability, local ownership, feasibility and affordability. At the same time, political leaders must be willing to allocate the necessary resources to build better institutions for justice and security. A Host-State Perspective Mr. Sando Wayne, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Liberia, addressed a challenge commonly faced by countries trying to build or rebuild a professional national police service. He conveyed his country s deep appreciation for the UN s capacity-building and training efforts over almost ten years, but argued that serious weaknesses still hinder the Liberian National Police, especially in what he called the hardware gap. The protective gear, restraints, vehicles, computers and other basic police equipment, which other countries take for granted, are still no guarantee in Liberia, ten years after the end of its civil war. These observations prompted discussion among conference participants, some of whom argued that basic equipment gaps may reflect an insufficient political will to prioritize (and budget for) effective law enforcement. Beyond equipment, conference participants stressed the importance of less tangible but still critical requirements to promote a culture that respects the rule of law and principles of democratic policing an effort that national politicians and civil society organizations must lead. Mr. Feller underlined that effective ownership cannot rely on top-down mechanisms alone. Where it is difficult to find a credible and legitimate local interlocutor, ownership means forging trust, confidence and a demand for basic, professional police services at the community level. As Mr. Ryan pointed out, in countries where police were party to violent conflict, managing ownership must include rebuilding the crucial relationship between police and Commissioner Stefan Feller, German Ministry of Interior communities. This requires time, trust and engagement beyond government and state institutions. International police must be ready to reach out to communities, grassroots advocacy groups, opinion makers and others typically not consulted through formal or institutional channels. Sustaining Police Reform: A Generational Effort that Extends Beyond Peacekeeping Traditional police peacekeeping, as conducted until the mid-1990s, created lose-loselose situations, observed Mr. Andrew Carpenter, Chief of the UN Police Division s Stra- 16

17 What We ve Learned in the Field: 50+ Years in the Police Peacekeeping Business tegic Policy Development and Support Section. The UN, through monitoring and observation alone, were unable to provide protection to vulnerable citizens. As a result, qualified international police officers often left missions frustrated, feeling as though they had made little positive, lasting impact. As Ms. Orler stressed, the international community learned that police peacekeepers need to support capacity and institution building with specialized skills and predictable, multi-year funding. Given the multitude and complexity of tasks, many conference participants referenced the World Bank s recent finding that countries that have addressed violence have sequenced reforms, frequently over a generational time period, to develop social consensus, and to allow their societies to absorb change and to develop their institutional capacities. 2 Just like the other elements of a stable institutional order, police reform requires a generational effort that extends beyond the time period a peacekeeping operation can realistically last. Finding the right balance between police peacekeeping and more long-term police assistance can be more art than science. Sometimes, Ms. Orler reflected with candor, we stay too long. Recently, the UN took concrete steps to provide more coherent planning and delivery of both peacekeeping and long-term development assistance in the rule of law sector. Among other objectives, the new DPKO/UNDP Global Focal Point on Police, Justice and Corrections aims to ensure that gains made by UN police components are sustained both during and after the transfer from a UN mission to a UN Country Team lead. Similar efforts in the EU currently seek to improve coherence between EU civilian crisis management and the European Commission s development assistance. Improving Institutional Capacity in the UN Secretariat Several important institutional developments have allowed the UN Secretariat to strengthen its management and support for police peacekeeping. The Brahimi Report in 2001, the creation of the Standing Police Capacity in 2007 and Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon s inaugural reform of DPKO in 2008 are among the milestones where member states have made significant investments in peacekeeping capacities. As a result, the Police Division now consists of 64 posts at the UN secretariat, with an additional 40 staff members serving with the Standing Police Capacity in Brindisi, Italy. Compared to the situation that the Brahimi panel found in 2001, today s institutional support systems for field operations have markedly improved. Mission planning, guidance development and management systems have been professionalized. For example, a revised policy for Formed Police Units, adopted in 2010, continues to be instrumental in enhancing the utilization and improving the performance of formed units. 2 The World Bank. World Development Report Conflict, Security, and Development. Washington, DC, p

18 The Right Capacities for New Challenges 3. How to Further Improve Delivery of Police Peacekeeping Services Identifying and securing the requisite funding and people to meet police peacekeeping needs continues to be a challenge. The recent, global economic downturn further reduced the available resources that member states are able to provide for police peacekeeping operations. This particular challenge is neither unique to UN policing nor likely to lessen in the foreseeable future. Doing more with less is commonly invoked in response to the current fiscal climate. The reduction in total available peacekeeping resources provided by member states is outside the control of the UN police. Instead, the key to enhancing police peacekeeping is to concentrate efforts in strategic, focused areas where the UN has the ability to make positive changes. Possible improvements identified at the Berlin Conference fell into three general categories: strategic guidance, personnel and leadership. Developing Strategic Guidance Today, Mr. Carpenter said, more than 25,000 police officers, seconded from approximately 18,000 different police and law enforcement institutions, are deployed globally in international, regional and bilateral police peacekeeping and related assistance. The UN, with 12,500 police officers currently deployed, is by far the largest provider of police peacekeepers. All of these officers bring their own individual skillsets and national police experience. Prior to their deployment, few have had experience in reforming organizational structures. Consequently, Commissioner Fred Yiga from the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) argued, UN police officers need to be provided with clear guidance and a standardized reform and restructuring approach to be effective. To close this gap, DPKO has been developing a Strategic Guidance Framework (SGF) that will ultimately help the UN be more consistent in the provision of public safety, police reform and support to host state police. To take into account as many different national perspectives as possible, the road toward developing the SGF has moved from a geographic to a thematic approach. A series of Member State consultations, held in each region of the world, took place between 2011 and Based on an emerging consensus on the definition of international police peacekeeping, smaller working groups will now address thematic policing topics. Finally, training and dissemination strategies will be designed to translate guidance into operational practice. 18

19 How to Further Improve Delivery of Police Peacekeeping Services Any guidance document must balance a one-size-fits-all approach with the need for flexibility and applicability to various mission settings. Conference participants cautioned that the establishment of an overarching definition of police peacekeeping might not take into account the pronounced cultural and political differences of different countries. To avoid this risk, the SGF should aim to identify the smallest, most straightforward set of principles that constitute the core of international police peacekeeping, while allowing for adaptation to each state s needs and traditions. Attracting, Training and Deploying the Right Personnel The struggle to get the right mixture of skills and competence has grown even more difficult as the Security Council issues increasingly ambitious mandates. Too often, Ms. Orler reported, we take what we get and not what we need. In addition to the traditional capacity gaps that exist with regard to training, gender and language skills, a host of specialized police and institutional development skills are required in multidimensional missions. Conference participants identified the following personnel-related areas as requiring improvement and/or further analysis: Pre-deployment training. Pre-deployment training for peacekeepers, including specific training on cultural competency for a given mission setting, continues to be inconsistent. This situation prompted Mr. Carpenter to comment that most officers who are trained are not deployed, and most who are deployed have not received predeployment training. Recruitment and selection process. Member State capacity generation and the UN s ability to request and process contributions could also be linked more closely. While the Police Division continues to make improvements in this area, conference participants reiterated the need for the UN to ensure that recruitment processes are as quick and efficient as possible. Identification of specialists. Missions must be able to request particular specialized skills for police components to deliver on their mandates. Conversely, missions must ensure that the specialists provided by member states for a specific purpose are actually used for that intended function. Francophone officers. Since 2009, more than half of UN police have been deployed to francophone countries, but the lack of French-speaking officers persists, hampering communication both with the local population and within the mission. 19

20 The Right Capacities for New Challenges In addition to these issues, gender mainstreaming remains a high priority. With the launch of the Global Effort in 2009, the UN police set the ambitious goal of achieving 20 per cent female police officers in peace operations. The need for female officers is especially critical in places such as Darfur, where interactions between men and women are strictly regulated. Female police officers may also face negative social pressure because police service is not perceived as an appropriate role for women in society. Even in countries with a higher share of female police officers, discrimination remains problematic, with women being underrepresented in command/management roles and/or not receiving the appropriate training and support. To improve the representation of women in the ranks of police peacekeepers (currently at 10 per cent), conference participants suggested a combination of (1) targeted training and capacity-building for female police officers, (2) additional preparations prior to deployment, (3) improved networking opportunities for women, and (4) responsiveness to women s needs in field service, such as separate accommodations. Innovations from the Field Pre-Deployment Training Initiative While police-contributing countries are responsible for predeployment training, the Darfur Interim Pre-Deployment Training initiative is an example of an effective, collaborative project that helped prepare police officers to work in a mission setting and ensured higher quality of police peacekeeping services. Through this initiative which linked bilateral donors, peacekeeping training centers, police-contributing countries and missions the share of UNAMID Police who received pre-deployment training increased from 10 to 76 per cent in the space of a year. Sexual and Gender-Based Violence (SGBV) Investigations In Berlin, the UN Police SGBV Team currently deployed to Haiti shared their experiences. Norway s first specialist team represents a new deployment model that could be replicated by other member states. Following the 2010 earthquake, the Norwegian government deployed a team of five police experts in SGBV, which delivered intensive training to Haitian National Police trainers and MINUSTAH gender focal points, provided small construction and equipment projects funded through their own national project budget, and engaged in other activities to address SGBV. The Norwegian government recently commissioned an independent evaluation of the project, which found that the training had led to a significant change in attitude among MINUSTAH personnel. Based on these findings, Norway is considering deploying another expert team to Haiti on preventing and investigating cases of serious crime. 20

21 How to Further Improve Delivery of Police Peacekeeping Services Leadership and Command In peacekeeping missions on the ground, heads of police components face the challenge of implementing a complex and demanding mandate with limited and often insufficient resources, in an environment with many competing and sometimes heavily armed groups. In these circumstances, police reform is a demanding managerial task performed within a political minefield. Recruitment and vetting processes, which international police peacekeepers have assisted with in many different missions, are a case in point. In a post-conflict context, these processes are not merely administrative; they are also deeply political and contentious as they determine who gets to serve in the new police service. In that way, questions of police reform are closely connected to the domestic balance of power among powerful interests associated with the former or residual conflict. Leaders need the professional knowledge and operational experience of policing to secure the mission s credibility with host-state counterparts. But they also need an acute political awareness and judgement to successfully implement their mandates in this environment. Nations can only be at peace with safety and security when people not only have their basic daily needs met, but also when they can live without fear. Police commanders who meet these requirements are, of course, a scarce resource in any country, particularly when it comes to availability for international assignments. And all too often, senior police officers who have gained valuable experience in police peacekeeping rapidly become refocused on national career paths and are lost for future missions. Special Representative of INTERPOL to the United Nations William J.S. Elliott Participants stressed that both national governments and the UN could contribute to improving the strategic development of future leaders for police peacekeeping. A number of initial steps were suggested, such as implementing a standard deployment period of two to three years to reduce turnover in senior management positions. 21

22 The Right Capacities for New Challenges Transnational Organized Crime as a Spoiler of Peace Over the last decade, the United Nations and international security organizations have increasingly turned their attention to the global nexus of corruption, organized crime, cyber-terrorism and the illegal trafficking of drugs, arms and people. While organized crime constitutes a major threat to domestic security in any country, post-conflict societies are especially vulnerable. Mr. William J.S. Elliott, Special Representative of INTERPOL to the United Nations, explained that organized criminals are particularly drawn to post-conflict zones, which often have law enforcement systems that are still fragile and underdeveloped, and which offer high profits at low risks. For example, Mr. Lale-Demoz added that much of the current violence in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo is directly linked to organized crime. Illegal armed groups and corrupt military elements use trafficking in minerals, drugs, timber and wildlife, along with money laundering and high-level corruption, to finance continued conflict and maintain persistent lawlessness and maintain weak governance. Propelled by powerful markets in Western countries, organized crime deepens vulnerabilities in post-conflict societies by penetrating public institutions, distorting economic recovery and diverting resources away from development. Key steps have been taken at a political level. The UN s 2004 High-level Panel on Threats, Challenges and Change identified organized crime as one of the six clusters of threats to international peace and security. In 2010, the UN Security Council requested that organized crime be integrated into planning and assessment of integrated missions. In March 2011, the UN Task Force on Transnational Organized Crime and Drug Trafficking was set up by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to integrate responses to transnational organized crime into the peacekeeping, peacebuilding, security and development activities of the United Nations, with UNODC and the Department of Political Affairs as co-chairs. On the ground, progress remains illusive, as organized criminals are often better resourced than those combating them. They are well-networked in their societies, which helps blur the lines between organized crime and official state structures. This can put a UN mission in a difficult position. While it needs to be prepared to tackle public corruption more forcefully, reform programs also require committed local ownership of the very same owners who may be corrupt and resistant to reform. In order to address organized crime, member states have to provide peacekeeping operations with specialist units to work closely with and mentor their counterparts within the host-state police and justice system. By providing such experts, even police-contributing countries that face strong domestic pressure against deploying large numbers of officers could make important contributions to international police peacekeeping. One particular example of international collaboration on organized crime is the West Africa Coast Initiative (WACI), founded in Recognizing the serious threat posed by organized crime to security and stability in West Africa, WACI was launched in Côte d Ivoire, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia and Sierra Leone to combat illicit drug trafficking and organized crime. WACI helped establish Transnational Crime Units (TCUs) in all four countries to gather information, analyze data and develop operational capabilities to support crossborder investigations. UNODC, DPKO s Police Division and INTERPOL continue to advice and mentor local police officers through this initiative. 22

23 Conclusion: The Right Capacities for New Challenges 4. Conclusion: The Right Capacities for New Challenges With international police peacekeeping, the UN and its global partners continue to provide a vital resource. At the same time, the conference reflected the consensus among practitioners, policy-makers and independent experts that existing institutional capacity and support systems remain under-resourced. In order to provide the requisite people and funding for international police peacekeeping, member states need to transcend domestic institutional boundaries, including across budgets, organizations, agendas and professional communities. To assist member states in bridging these gaps, police peacekeeping will need to achieve greater visibility and priority on the political agenda, nationally and globally. Throughout the two days of the conference, presenters and participants generated a number of proposals to improve police peacekeeping at the UN and beyond. Some of these steps are practical and even technical in nature, while others aim at focusing on fostering political will more effectively. 1. Understaffing of UN police missions is a significant challenge, but it is even more critical to find the right people with specialized expertise. Member states who prefer acting as donors rather than police contributors, in particular, heard a number of appeals to increase their participation in UN police operations. In this context, strategies should be developed to enhance the availability and deployment of qualified specialists to police peacekeeping, such as through mainstreaming the specialist team approach. 2. To tap into a broader base of expertise, participants also suggested that additional resources for hiring civilians should be included in police component budgets. Ms. Haq s example of 19 Civilian Police Experts in Timor- Leste indicates the success of such an approach. At leadership level, this would allow missions to recruit civilian experts in areas such as administration, change management and security sector reform. 3. Member states need to recognize the value of international service in terms of leadership development and their own strategic human resource requirements. Intercultural experience, political exposure and access to broader international networks are only a few of the benefits that police officers gain during deployment. Creating career incentives for talented police officers to work in peace operations would help produce a higher quality of officer in the field. 23

24 The Right Capacities for New Challenges 4. The need for clear and achievable mandates, accompanied by adequate financial and human resources, will only be met when there is sufficient political attention at the highest forums of the United Nations. Raising the profile of police peacekeeping requires significant outreach to the UN General Assembly, Security Council and Special Committee on Peacekeeping Operations. 5. Beyond the working-level communications through the Strategic Police Advisory Group, DPKO s Police Division should strive to be better connected to national capitals, linking political decision-making to both the foreign affairs and domestic security communities. To bridge this gap, the establishment of a Group of Friends for the UN Police was discussed as one way to include all stakeholders involved in UN police missions and facilitate the informal exchange of ideas, a way to create a sense of common purpose, and a place to launch concrete initiatives. Since the conference, the Group of Friends has been established, and it held its first meeting in New York in May Embracing the momentum created at the conference, Ms. Orler closed the conference by saying, Let us now roll up our sleeves and follow up on the challenges of the 21 st century, together with all 193 member states. 24

25 Annex 1: Concluding Statement Annex 1: Concluding Statement High-level officials from over 100 member states took part in the conference International Police Peacekeeping in the 21 st century: The Right Capacities for New Challenges on October 2012 in Berlin, and discussed in-depth the following: 1. International police peacekeepers are making an indispensable, growing contribution to peacekeeping and peacebuilding by delivering security and rule of law assistance to rebuild the foundations for development in post-conflict settings. In light of new security challenges, including serious organised, transnational crime, terrorism, maritime piracy and porous borders, international police peacekeeping is both an important expression of global solidarity and a necessity for preventing the further spread of security risks. 2. International police peacekeeping has undergone significant changes in the past decade with increased emphasis put on support for the reform, restructuring and rebuilding of Host State police and operational support to Host State policing. These new demands require greater efforts to ensure that police, judicial and correction support programs by all UN actors are jointly developed, funded, implemented and evaluated from the start of a mission. In this regard, participants welcomed the establishment of the Joint DPKO-UNDP Global Focal Point for justice, police and corrections in post-conflict and other crisis situations. They encouraged bilateral donors, regional organizations and other relevant stakeholders to join DPKO and UNDP in realising the ideal of cohesive sector-wide delivery of predictable and consistent police and other law enforcement assistance. 3. Being a core element of the rule of law domain, the UN police works in an integrated manner with DPKO s justice, corrections and human rights teams. The UN police is also a major contributor to the Organization s activity in the area of security sector management and reform. 4. As they confront complex security challenges, United Nations police require police officers with specialized skill sets to counter new threats to peace in post-conflict environments. The skills sets most required include police planning and management, information analysis and criminal intelligence, integrated border management, public order management, professional standards and anti-corruption and police command. 5. In this regard, the participants emphasised the need to further increase the pool of police-contributing countries, as well as forge new partnerships with regional organizations to ensure that full account be taken of existing local and regional knowledge and expertise in delivering police assistance. 25

26 The Right Capacities for New Challenges 6. Existing capacity gaps call for new deployment models, e.g. deployments in specialized teams of thematic experts provided by an individual country or a group of member states. The participants undertake to encourage their own police services to consider this and other innovative secondment options. 7. The participants commend the efforts of DPKO s United Nations Police Division to more than double the proportion of women comprising UN police to at least 20 per cent by 2014 and pledge to raise awareness about this effort in their police services. 8. The participants recognize the role of the United Nations police in combating the scourge of sexual and gender-based violence. In particular, they appreciate the development of the UN Police Training Curriculum on Preventing and Investigating Sexual and Gender-based Violence and pilot regional train-the-trainers workshops. They expect the incorporation of elements of this curriculum into pre-deployment training to significantly increase the capacity of UN police officers to investigate sexual and gender-based crimes in the mission area and to transfer their knowledge and skills in this field to their Host State counterparts. 9. The participants stressed the need to address significant gaps in the areas of guidance development, curriculum development and training for United Nations police. In this regard, they welcomed the United Nations Police Division s ongoing work to develop the strategic guidance framework in close cooperation with member states which will lay the foundation for comprehensive guidance development aimed at setting the standards and defining the role and responsibilities of international policing. 10. The participants underscored the need for mandatory pre-deployment training of high quality if police personnel are to positively contribute to the implementation of the mandate. 11. Bearing in mind the significance of public order management and addressing organized crime for early peacebuilding, the participants encouraged UN police to focus on building Host State institutional capacity for delivering security and justice from the beginning of every mission with a view to expeditiously handing over responsibility for public order to the Host State police. 12. The participants appreciated the contribution of Formed Police Units (FPUs) in assisting the national authorities in their specific role of maintaining law and order in mission areas, deterring forceful attempts to disrupt the political process and protecting civilians under imminent threat of physical attack. At the same time, the participants called on police-contributing countries to ensure that personnel nominated are highly qualified, well trained, medically fit and well equipped, and possess the highest standards of integrity. Capability and capacity deficits in these areas not only run the risk of derailing peacekeeping efforts and implementation of mandates given by the Security Council but also put lives of FPU personnel in danger. 26

27 Annex 1: Concluding Statement 13. The participants encourage the United Nations police and the International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL) to take full advantage of the 2009 Outcome Declaration and the 2010 Action Plan for International Police Peacekeeping and to enhance concrete collaboration in the field with a view to increasing the Host State capacities to fight serious and organised crime. In this regard, they recognize the critical impact of the West African Coast Initiative (WACI) on reducing drug trafficking and organized crime in the subregion and voice support for the development of similar initiatives in other regions. The participants encouraged DPKO to explore establishing in peacekeeping operations of specialized transnational crime advisory capacities. 14. The participants express firm belief in the need to give greater prominence to police peacekeeping issues in the work of the General Assembly, Security Council and the Special Committee on Peacekeeping Operations and call on these bodies to provide UN police with clear and achievable mandates and to meet the UN police requirements in the financial, personnel and other areas. 15. To advance political engagement with these issues, participants considered the potential for more structured cooperation among member states and agreed to examine possible ways of establishing such a mechanism in order to improve both the capacity and the impact of UN police and law enforcement assistance in compliance with international standards and norms of crime prevention, criminal justice and human rights. 27